yellow-green fairy tale book

Chapter 23 Five Proverbs of the Mage
Once upon a time there was a handsome young man named Ram Singh.Although everyone liked him, he himself was not happy because he was often scolded by his stepmother.She kept nagging in his ear all day long, and the young man couldn't take it anymore, and decided to run away from home and go outside to find his own happiness.After he made up his mind, he came up with a plan.Early the next morning, he packed some clothes in his bag, put some money in his pocket, and set off.

However, there was one man in the village whom he wanted to say goodbye to.This person was an old mage who had been the teacher of Ram Singh. He was very wise and taught Ram Singh many things.So, Ram Singh came to the house of the mage and knocked on the door before full daylight.The old man warmly received his students.He was very good at reading words and feelings, and he could see at a glance when the young man was in trouble.

"Young man," he said, "what's the matter with you?"

"Nothing, sir," replied the young man, "but I have decided to go out and seek my happiness."

"Listen to my advice," said the old mage, "Stay in your father's house. The gold and silver nests outside are not as good as the grass nests in your own home."

However, Ram Singh would not listen at all, and the old man quickly dismissed the idea of ​​persuading him.

"Okay!" the old man finally said, "if you have made up your mind, I think you can do it according to your own ideas! However, before you leave, I have five proverbs for you. You must be serious. Listen, remember it well. As long as you remember these few words, then bad luck will not come to you. First, obey the master's instructions and don't ask this or that; second, don't speak rudely to anyone , be mean; third, never lie; fourth, don’t try to be equal to someone higher than you; fifth, wherever you go, if you see someone preaching the holy book, stop and listen, even if it’s just for a few minutes Over time, your behavioral philosophy will also be strengthened."

Ram Singh promised to take the old man's words to heart and set off.

After some days, he came to a big city.He had spent all the money he had brought with him, so he decided to find a job, no matter how cheap it was, he would do it.He saw a businessman who seemed to have a successful career standing in front of a store full of various grains, so he went up to him and asked if he could give him some work.The businessman stared at him for a long time, and the young man felt that there was no hope.But at last the merchant said:
"Of course, there is a position waiting for you."

"What do you mean?" asked Ram Singh.

"Well! Well," said the merchant, "our prince's prime minister fired his valet yesterday and is in need of a new one. You are young, tall and handsome, just the kind of person he wants, so I suggest You go there!"

The young man thanked the businessman for his advice and immediately went to the prime minister's house.The matter was settled quickly, because he was tall and handsome, he was immediately photographed and became the servant of this big man.

Before long, the Maharaja was going on a journey, and the Prime Minister accompanied him.With them came a great company of servants, attendants, soldiers, mule drivers and camel drivers, merchants who provided food and fodder, singers and bands for entertainment, as well as elephants, camels, and horses. , mules, ponies, monkeys, goats, and all kinds of carriages, both two-wheeled and four-wheeled, of all sizes.Therefore, the whole procession looks like a big city is migrating.

After walking for a few days, they came to a country.It's like an ocean of sand.The flying sand blown by the strong wind was like a cloud, choking people and livestock.In the evening, they came to a village.The herdsmen hurried out to greet the prince.After paying homage to him, he began to say with a sad face that the presence of the prince and his large retinue was a great embarrassment to them, for there was not a well or a spring to drink water for so many people and animals.

What the herdsmen said caused them to fall into great panic.But the prince just said something to the prime minister: find a way to get water.For the prince, this sentence is enough.The Prime Minister quickly called all the elderly people here and asked them if there was a well nearby.

They looked at me helplessly, and I looked at you, and they all said no.Then an old man with a white beard said:
"Yes, Prime Minister, there is a well two or three miles away from this village. It was dug by a certain king in the past. It is said that the well is very large and inexhaustible. Leading to the deep underground.

However, no one dares to approach it, because there are often evil spirits haunting it.It is said that those who went to the well never came back. "

The Prime Minister twirled his beard, thought for a moment, then turned to Ram Singh, who was standing behind his chair, and said:
"As the old saying goes," he said, "a man who has been tested is trustworthy. Go, go to the well and fetch some water for the prince and his men."

The old mage's first maxim flashed in his mind-always obey the master's order, don't ask this or that.

So he immediately called back and said he was ready.After speaking, he was ready to go immediately.With the old man in the village as his guide, he tied two large copper pots to the mule's back and set off with two smaller pots on his shoulders.Before long they came to a place where a few tall trees shaded the barren ground.Under the shade of the tree, there is a dome that looks like an ancient building. The guide pointed to it and said, this is the well.But pardon his old age and fatigue, and besides, the sun was almost setting, and he had to go home.So Ram Singh said goodbye to him and walked over with the mule himself.

At the foot of the tree, Ram Singh tied up the mule and took down the water jug.After seeing the mouth of the well, he walked down the steps step by step into the darkness.The steps were made of broad slabs of white striped marble that glowed faintly in the dark.He walked deeper and deeper, and it was very quiet below.Even the steps of his bare feet seemed to echo.One of the jars in his hand fell out of his hand and rolled down the well with a deafening noise that startled him.However, he still walked forward until he saw a large pond, in which was a clear spring of Ganli.He cleaned the jars carefully, filled them with water, and then went up first with the two small water jars. The two big ones were so heavy that they could only be lifted one by one.Suddenly, he felt something moving on it, and when he looked up, he saw a giant standing on the steps!In one hand he was holding a horrible dead man's skeleton, and in the other he was holding a lamp, the light of which cast long shadows on the wall, making him look even more frightening.

"Hey, you, young man," said the giant, "do you think my wife is very beautiful and lovely?" As he said, he held a lamp to shine on the skeleton in his arms, and looked at it affectionately.

Now, I must tell you that this giant had a very beautiful wife, and he loved her very much.However, after she died, her husband didn't believe that she was dead, and he always hugged her until she turned into a pile of bones.Ram Singh certainly didn't know any of this.But at this time, he remembered the teacher's second maxim, don't say harsh words to others.So he replied:

"Yes, sir, I'm sure you'll never find a prettier one than her."

"Haha, your eyesight is so good!" cried the giant happily. "You have finally seen it. I don't know how many people I have killed who dared to insult her. You are a good man, and I will help you. "

As he spoke, he carefully put down the bones, grabbed two large copper pots, and when Ram Singh lifted the two small pots to the ground, he had easily sent them up.

"Now," said the Giant, "you have made me happy, and you can make me a request, and I will grant you whatever you want. Perhaps you want me to tell you where the dead king's treasure is hidden?" He was eager ground added.

But Ram Singh just shook his head when he told him about the treasure hidden in the ground.

"What I want you to do," he said, "is to get off this well, so that people can come in and get water."

Perhaps the giant thought he would make some more difficult request, so he was very happy to hear him say this, and promised to leave immediately.When Ram Singh left here in the twilight with these precious waters, he saw the giant walking away with his wife's bones in his arms.

When Ram Singh brought the water back to the camp, everyone was amazed and happy at the same time.However, Ram Singh said nothing about this adventure and dealing with giants.He just told the prince that the well can be used without any problem.This was true, for after that the giant was never seen again.

The Maharaja was very pleased with the behavior of Ram Singh, and ordered the Prime Minister to send the young man to him, and the Maharaja exchanged a servant for him.Thus, Ram Singh became the entourage of the maharajah.As time went by, the prince became more and more fond of the young man.Because he keeps in mind the third maxim of his husband, he is loyal and honest, and never tells lies.Later, the prince appointed him as treasurer and put him in charge of money.In this way, he has a very high status in the palace, with power and money in his hands.Unfortunately, the Maharaja had a brother who was very bad.He thought that if he could win Ram Singhra over, he could steal money from the treasury bit by bit as he pleased.Then, as long as you have a lot of money, you can buy the army and ministers, instigate a rebellion, drive the prince out of power, kill him, and replace him by yourself.Of course, he dared not tell Ram Singh about this conspiracy rashly.From then on, however, he flattered Ram Singh whenever he saw him, and finally promised to marry his daughter to him.However, Ram Singh remembered the fourth maxim of the old master: Don't try to be equal to those who are higher than yourself.Therefore, he declined the kind offer of marrying the princess.The prince, the prince's younger brother, was thwarted in his plot at the beginning, and of course he was very angry and determined to destroy him.He came before the Maharaja and fabricated a lie that Ram Singh had spoken ill of the Maharaja and the Princess.As for what he said, no one knows.Of course, this was a non-existent thing, and the vicious prince certainly didn't know about it.But the prince was very angry when he heard this, and his face turned red.He declared at once that unless the treasurer's head was not cut off, neither he nor the princess nor the prince would eat or drink.

"However," said the prince, "I don't want anyone to know that I wanted to kill him. If anyone tells the story, I will punish him severely." The prince could only agree to this.

Then, the prince sent someone to call the officer of the guard, and asked him to take some soldiers to a tower that was under construction outside the city immediately. Cut off his head and bring him back, and bury his body on the spot.The old officer thought the order was very strange, but it was not his concern, so he saluted and went out to carry out the prince's order.

The maharaja did not sleep well all night. Early the next morning, he called Ram Singh and told him to go to the newly built tower and ask how the project was progressing and when it would be completed. Report back immediately.

Ram Singh got the order and set off.However, when he passed by a small monastery on the outskirts of the city, he heard someone inside chanting scriptures aloud. He remembered the fifth mantra of the old master, so he went in and sat down, wanting to listen for a while.He didn't intend to listen for too long, but the wisdom of the mage made him more and more absorbed. He just sat there, sat, sat, and just sat there, and the sun rose higher and higher.

Meanwhile, the wicked prince dared not disobey the Maharaja's orders, and was terribly hungry.As for the princess, she was so hungry that she sat in a corner and wept silently, waiting for the news that Ram Singh had been beheaded so that she could have her breakfast.

Hour after hour passed, and the wicked prince kept looking out of the window, but still no messenger came to report.

At last the prince could bear it no longer, and hastily disguising himself so that no one would recognize him, rode up to the tower.The prince had told him that the execution would be carried out here.Here, however, he saw no sign of an imminent execution.What he saw was that only some people were buried in their work, and some soldiers were looking at them lazily.Forgetting that he had been disguised so that no one could recognize him, he rode up and shouted:

"You people, why are you working here! Why don't you hurry up, when will this work be done?"

Hearing these words, the soldiers all turned their heads to look at the commander who was sitting alone not far away.He sent a signal secretly, but the prince did not see it.In an instant there was a flash of a sword in the sun, and the prince's head rolled to the ground.

The prince put on a beard when he was disguised, so that the soldiers did not recognize that the murdered man was the prince's brother.Following the command of the commander, they buried the body on the spot and wrapped the head in cloth.After all this was done, the officer took the head and rode towards the palace.

At this time, the maharaja had come back from dealing with government affairs. To his great surprise, he saw neither the head of Ram Singh nor his younger brother who had been waiting for him.As the minutes passed, he began to feel uneasy and decided to go and see for himself what was going on.After ordering the horse to be ready, he rode out alone.

When the Maharaja approached the tower, Ram Singh was still sitting there listening to scriptures.The young treasurer heard the sound of the horse's hooves, turned his head and saw that it was the prince himself who was riding the horse!Ashamed that he had forgotten his errand, he got up and ran out to meet the prince.He seemed surprised to see the prince to see him (he was really surprised).At this time, the guard officer came over with the package on horseback.He saluted the prince solemnly, dismounted from his horse, and opened the parcel.The prince watched in amazement as the last rope was untied, and his brother's head lay before him.The prince jumped down from his horse, grabbed the officer's arm, and as soon as he was calm enough to speak, he asked what was the matter.Gradually, he began to have doubts about his younger brother.Then he just told the officer in a few words that he was doing a good job.Then he took Ram Singh aside again, and he soon knew that Ram Singh was delaying what the Maharaja had asked him to do because he was listening to the priest.

In the end, the maharaja got some evidence and discovered the conspiracy of his dead brother, which also proved the innocence and integrity of Ram Singh.He served the prince faithfully for many years, married a woman of equal status to himself, and lived a happy life together.He was revered and loved by all after his death.He had several sons, and he duly passed on these five wise maxims of the old master to them.

(End of this chapter)